Montana ‘hoot owl’ restrictions lifted

Sat., Aug. 25, 2018, 3:28 p.m.

A man fishes on the bank of the Spokane River on Thursday July 12, 2018. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will lift afternoon and evening fishing restrictions Friday on the Sun River west of Great Falls in the wake of recent cooler water temperatures. (Eli Francovich / The Spokesman-Review)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will lift afternoon and evening fishing restrictions Friday on the Sun River west of Great Falls in the wake of recent cooler water temperatures.

The “hoot owl” closure put into place in early August affected the Sun River from the Highway 287 bridge near Augusta to the mouth of Muddy Creek west of Great Falls. No fishing was allowed daily from 2 p.m. to midnight.

The restrictions eneded Friday.

“According to FWP’s drought policy, a stream may be reopened if water temperatures do not exceed 70 for three consecutive days,” said Jason Mullen, FWP fisheries biologist in a news release. “Water temperatures on the Sun River at Simms were less than 70 from Aug. 18-20, meeting this threshold for reopening.”